Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Axe Edge

 

18.03.25 & 10.04.25  Mow Cop (SJ 858 575) and Old Man of Mow (SJ 858 575) 

The Old Man of Mow (SJ 858 575) and the trig point atop Mow Cop (SJ 858 575)

A day out with Mark with an intriguing investigation and a survey planned.  The first part of the day was spent in southern Manchester gathering information on a project that was debated when at John Kirk’s house last October.  Happy with our initial investigation the SatNav extricated us out of the confines of Manchester toward the quieter countryside and open fields of Cheshire as we headed toward its border with Staffordshire.  It was here where a pillar of rock and a trig point awaited.  However, before visiting Mow Cop we spent an hour in a pub with a late lunch and good conversation.

Mow Cop is one of those oddities in British hill listing as it has two distinct high points.  One is beside a trig point on a part of the hill that remains intact after extensive quarrying activities; this is listed as a Submarilyn by Alan Dawson.  Whilst the other is an impressive rock pillar, left in situ after those self-same quarrying activities, this is higher than the ground beside the trig point and is listed by Mark Jackson as the summit in the Humps.  The trig summit is easily attained, whilst the rock pillar requires competent climbing skill to slither up to its high point. 

The sign at the start of the walk

I’d read reports of this area but had not until today visited.  Thankfully the weather proved beautiful with unadulterated blue sky, albeit with a chilled east breeze whisking across the upper hill.  Mark had visited the trig summit before, and as he is bagging English Humps he was enthusiastic to see if any higher ground beside the castle and a private house was higher than the rock pillar.  Otherwise his English Hump completion may have to wait with one hill forever lingering out of his grasp. 

The castle from the edge of the car park

A car park close to the castle gives easy access to the various points we hoped to visit with good paths from one to another.  A path and steps led up to the castle which according to the information board was erected as a folly.  As with most follies it is a shell, but still impressive as it perches atop a rock outcrop, the high point of which looked as it was just the other side of the stepped section.  From here the top of the rock pillar could be seen and we soon dismissed the rock beside the castle as an overall high point. 

Another view of the castle

A path led down from the castle before swinging around to continue up toward the confines of the rock pillar.  A number of people were out enjoying the sunshine and extensive view.  The latter surprised me, but being on the edge of the Peak afforded a view westward across the Cheshire plain toward the sandstone escarpment of Raw Head. 

The Old Man of Mow

I hadn’t realised that access to the base of the rock pillar was so easy, imagining it to be situated in the depths of a quarry and difficult to get to from ground beside the trig point.  As we rounded a corner on the narrow path that led from an access track to a private house, there it was; an upthrust of rock towering above.  Being beside the rock pillar also gave opportunity to survey the connecting col between it and the trig summit.  I attempted this on three occasions, each time the Trimble struggled to get anywhere close to the 0.1m accuracy level before data should be logged.  However, the proximity of the rock pillar which cut off 180° of the immediate surrounds and the fact that the other half was also restricted due to the col being in the bowl of the quarry meant that the required accuracy level was not attained, therefore I closed the equipment down and headed up to join Mark beside the trig point. 

Attempting to gather data at the connecting col

We quickly assessed the area of land beside the trig and decided that a rock about 3-4 metres from its base was the high point.  After the Trimble was positioned with its internal antenna aligned to the high point of rock I headed back to the trig point and aligned its top so I looked across to what was now its flat and horizontal length toward the top of the rock pillar.  The pillar was just a little higher than the top of the trig.  This was done relatively quickly and would need an optical device to be certain.  However, it is a good indicator that the rock pillar is higher than the ground beside the trig. 

Gathering data at the summit of Mow Cop

Mark headed down to wait beside the rock pillar as the Trimble gathered data.  After the customary five minutes of data were gathered and stored I closed the equipment down, took a few photographs, and packed it away and joined Mark down in the confines of the quarried bowl.  We then followed our inward path out toward the private houses that dot the land hereabouts; one has land beside and above it that interested Mark as another potential point to rival the height of the rock pillar.  However, it was on what looked like private land and a quick visual inspection dismissed it as a candidate.  All that remained was to follow the tracks and paths back to the car.  It all proved an excellent day out with the temptation of homemade pizza waiting for the hungry walkers as they arrived back at Trengove Towers. 

 

Postscript: 

The summit of Mow Cop with the castle in the background on the left

Prior to visiting Mow Cop I had not realised how easy it was to access the trig summit from the base of the rock pillar.  I also did not realise how easy it was to sight from the trig point toward the pillar of rock and hence ascertain a measurement offset for its height in relation to the top of the trig point.  It was good to be able to gather data at the high point of land beside the trig, but a second visit would give opportunity to also ascertain an accurate height for the rock pillar.

Therefore, with the weather continuing set fine I was out relatively early scraping frost from the windows of my car before heading east to the delights of Mow Cop.  I’d come prepared with all necessary equipment to get a measurement onset for the rock pillar.  This consisted of my old wooden measuring staff, something that I rarely use nowadays, but it still does the business and especially so over the relatively short distance between the top of the trig point and the top of the rock pillar.  I knew from my previous visit that the rock pillar is a little higher than the top of the trig point as I’d aligned one with the other and with my measuring staff sighting to a maximum 5ft (1.52m) height I hoped this would be sufficient. 

Mow Cop Castle

The rather attractive houses of Mow Cop were relatively quiet when I drove through the small community and wound my way uphill to the National Park car park at the base of the castle.  I soon had my walking boots on and set off up the path to the castle to investigate the highest natural rock beside its base.  Steps lead up toward the locked interior of the castle with metal railings either side.  On my previous visit I thought rock on the right hand side of the steps to be the highest natural point beside the castle.  However, on closer inspection there is also rock on the left hand side that looked slightly higher. 

Looking out toward the rock pillar and the trig point from beside the castle

I followed the path Mark and I had taken three weeks ago that wound down steeply before continuing toward the narrow lanes and the path through the small section of moor toward the base of the rock pillar.  It felt good to be back with the opportunity to gather more data.

It’s only a short ascent from the base of the rock pillar to the trig point and again I looked at the various embedded rocks around its base and confirmed that the one Mark and I had chosen for Trimble placement was the highest.  However, I wanted to gather data from the top of the trig before gathering more data from this point. 

The equipment needed to take a height reading for the Old Man of Mow 

Before setting the Trimble up to gather data I assembled the measuring staff and sighted with the aid of a fixed spirit level toward the top of the rock pillar, using a post level for vertical alignment.  As the trig point is placed on a plinth I placed the bottom of the staff at the side of the trig on top of the plinth.  I sighted using an initial 5ft reading, this proved above the top of the rock pillar, therefore I altered the spirit level height to 4ft 6˝ and again sighted toward the top of the rock pillar.  This proved much closer with the spirit level just skimming a couple of inches below its top.  Therefore the rock pillar was approximately 4ft 8˝ higher than the base of the trig point on top of the plinth.  Placing an 18˝ ruler flat on the top of the trig point I then marked with chalk where this intersected with the measuring staff.  By doing so this gave the height different between the top of the trig and the spirit level position fixed on the staff.  The spirit level was 19.0cm (0.19m) above the top of the trig point; add a couple of inches for the height difference already sighted and this gave a measurement offset of 24cm (0.24m).  Therefore, gathering Trimble data from the top of the trig point and adding 0.24m to the result would give a fairly accurate height for the top of the rock pillar.  During this process there wasn’t a breath of breeze, which obviously helped with sighting from one place to the other. 

Almost ready to take a height reading at the top of the trig point to ascertain with a 0.24m offset the height for the Old Man of Mow

Happy with my endeavours I now sighted toward the ground at the base of the castle and the high ground above a private house that Mark and I investigated on our previous visit.  Both proved lower and therefore were dismissed as potential high points. 

The top of the Old Man of Mow

I now packed the various bits of equipment away and set the Trimble on top of the trig point to gather data.  During data collection I stood a safe distance away from the trig so as not to interfere with satellite reception.  I watched as one or two people sauntered close to the rock pillar on the earthen track that contours the base of the moor.  It was proving pleasantly warm in the early morning sunshine, but I still had a number of data sets I wanted to gather, so I did not linger.  The next two were from the same position; on top of the trig point.  This would give three data sets to compare and take an average of their heights. 

Gathering data at the top of the trig point

Once this was done I re-positioned the Trimble with its internal antenna aligned with the highest natural and embedded rock about three metres from the base of the trig point and proceeded to gather a further two data sets.  These would give comparison with the data set collected three weeks ago with Mark and again it would now give three data sets that could be compared and averaged for their height. 

Gathering data at the summit of Mow Cop

I would have been more than happy for this to be the end of my surveying activities.  However, when visiting with Mark I tried to gather data from the connecting col between the rock pillar and the trig point summit.  I failed on three occasions, probably due to the rock pillar being immediately above the Trimble and the equipment obviously did not enjoy its surrounds. 

The Old Man of Mow from Mow Cop

Since my initial visit I used LIDAR to ascertain a height and position of this col, with 1m DSM LIDAR giving two positions of equal height, approximately two metres apart.  Being here also gave opportunity to try to gather data from this connecting col again.  I decided to position the Trimble a couple of metres away from the immediate base of the rock pillar, hoping that this new position would compare favourably with the LIDAR position, it would at least give the Trimble a greater chance of achieving the 0.1m accuracy level before data should be logged. 

Gathering data at the connecting col between Mow Cop and the Old Man of Mow

It took around 15 minutes for the accuracy level to be attained and once the 0.1m mark appeared on the screen I pressed ‘Log’ and scampered off to wait for five minutes of data to be gathered and stored.  This proved a bonus survey as I had little expectation that I could gather data from this point.  Once a few photos were taken I packed the equipment away and sauntered back to my car.  The re-visit had proven a worthwhile exercise and I was back home for 1.30pm and relaxing in my back garden by 2.00pm.  It proved an excellent way to spend a morning! 

 

Survey Result: 

                  

Mow Cop

Summit Height:  335.2m (converted to OSGM15, average of three Trimble GeoXH 6000 surveys)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 85841 57544

Col Height:  323.7m (converted to OSGM15)

Col Grid Reference:  SJ 85828 57559

Drop:  11.5m

Dominance:  3.42%

 

 

Old Man of Mow

Summit Height:  336.5m (converted to OSGM15, average of three Trimble GeoXH 6000 surveys)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 85825 57560 (LIDAR)

Col Height:  193.0m (LIDAR)

Col Grid Reference:  SJ 87858 56821 (LIDAR)

Drop:  143.5m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR col)

Dominance:  42.65% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR col)

 

 

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Axe Edge

03.07.19  Hind Low (SK 080 689)

Hind Low (SK 080 689)

Hind Low is easily accessed from its west, however its summit is now a truncated top perched over a vertical drop down in to a quarried basin.  I’d driven past the western route to its summit after I’d surveyed Booth Top and on my way to Sheffield six days ago, and now on my way home and having just surveyed Chelmorton Low I wanted an easy walk and an interesting summit to visit and survey before the continuation of the drive back home, and with increasing warmth the walk to the summit of Hind Low proved ideal.

The route to the top

A public footpath gives access to this hill from the west, and although its route seems to disappear soon after leaving the minor road where my car was parked on the grass verge, a path of sorts makes its way up between a grassed field to its south and the lip of all that remains of the land before the drop down to the quarried basin below.  I left this broad track to crest the lip of land and look down on a grey flatbed of desolation that had been formed by the activities of the quarry and thought this must once have been a beautiful unspoiled hill, one amongst many that have been quarried in to almost submission in this part of the Peak District.

Part of the Buxton Quarry

The route to the top was awash with wild flowers and small brown and also blue butterflies, with so many flitting from one flower to another that I was careful where I trod.  In its upper part the wind flowered track led to a collapsed wall which I used to bi-pass the increasing amount of nettled undergrowth closer to the quarry edge.

Looking down at the route to the summit from the collapsed wall

A perimeter fence led toward the remaining high point of the hill, with slabs of land looking delicately balanced seemingly waiting to collapse with fissures through the undergrowth leading to the fence, I trod carefully and eventually reached the remaining high point which is beside a large fence post, this gave a convenient position for Trimble placement.

Looking across at the remaining summit of Hind Low

The fissure in the ground beside the summit seemingly ready to crumble

As the Trimble gathered data I stood below it and waited in the sun for the customary five minutes of data to be gathered and stored.  During this I looked at the adjacent field and wondered about clambering the barb wired fence leading in to it for a quicker route back to my car.

Gathering data at the summit of Hind Low

Once the Trimble was closed down and packed away I opted for the middle route through lush undergrowth between the manicured field to my left and my inward route following the quarried edge, and soon regretted my choice as copious amounts of nettles bit in to my exposed legs.

Looking back at Hind Low

I had contemplated an ascent of Hen Cloud, a name that has fascinated me for many years and a hill I have yet to visit, but with the drive home and lots of things to sort and organise before visiting north Wales over the upcoming weekend and with increasing warmth I decided Hind Low would be my last hill of the day, and when back at my car and changed I headed back to Wales with fond memories of blue skies and good hills in the Peak District.

LIDAR summit image of Hind Low (SK 080 689)

Postscript:  Since the survey of this hill, the LIDAR (Light Detection & Ranging) technique is being used to produce accurate height and position for hills.  Subsequently this hill has been analysed via this technique, and it is this result that is being prioritised in preference to that produced by the Trimble GeoXH 6000.

Survey Result:

Hind Low

Summit Height:  446.8m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SK 08092 68944 (LIDAR)

Col Height:  403.2m (LIDAR)

Col Grid Reference:  SK 07728 68960 (LIDAR)

Drop:  43.6m (LIDAR)

Dominance:  9.77% (LIDAR)

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Axe Edge

03.07.19  Chelmorton Low (SK 114 706)

Chelmorton Low (SK 114 706) from the north north-west

Having spent six days in sunny Sheffield it was time to leave, and with the weather set fine I wanted to visit one or two hills near Buxton in the Peak District on my way home, and Chelmorton Low was ideal as the Hill Bagging website reported that as the hill’s two summit tumuli were of similar height its summit position was under debate and having the Trimble would, in all likelihood separate these two positions in height.

Before visiting the summit I headed for its connecting col, which is positioned in a field to the south.  A conveniently placed track gave sufficient space for me to park and I accessed the field where the col is placed from the minor road using two gate entrances and proceeded to examine the lay of land.  Having chosen the spot for Trimble placement I sat in long grass close to the adjoining wall next to the minor road listening to tractors slowly chug their way past as the Trimble gathered its customary five minutes of data.

Gathering data at the col of Chelmorton Low

Once the equipment was packed away it was only a short drive to the small community of Chelmorton which is positioned directly under the hill to its south.  Increasing warmth met me as I slowly plodded up the last remnants of paved road past the pub toward the public footpath which gives access to the upper part of the hill, which rose steeply ahead.

Chelmorton Low from the south

I love a good sign, and this one caught my eye as I walked up the road in Chelmorton

The public footpath between the road and open hillside

As I made my way up the steep grassed slopes I looked down at a myriad of flowers with their blues, yellows and purples adding delicate detail to the scene.  A collapsed wall directed me to the first tumulus, between this and the easterly tumulus were three cows who looked on and soon frisked away as I started assessing the lay of land for the first Trimble set-up position.

Two positions on the westerly of the two tumuli seemed of similar height and as I stood in the sunshine looking out on what I’d decided would be my next hill; Hind Low, the Trimble beeped away gathering the first data set of the day.

Gathering data at the westerly tumulus

Once data were stored I repositioned the equipment on the second point which vied for the high point of the westerly tumulus and watched as a small herd of cows appeared and edged nearer to the surveying proceedings being conducted in their field, only to frisk away as I stood back from the Trimble as it started to gather data.

The easterly tumulus was only a short distance away and once on its top there was only one position that needed Trimbling.  Again as data were gathered I stood back, noted all relevant detail in a note book and luxuriated myself in the warmth of the day.

Gathering data at the easterly tumulus

Once the last summit data were gathered and stored all that remained was to retrace my inward route back to my awaiting car, down beside the collapsed wall and the steep grassed slopes back on to the public footpath and past the pub whose adjoining garden was now full of people relaxing in the sun with drinks and food; next stop Hind Low.

LIDAR summit image of Chelmorton Low

LIDAR col image of Chelmorton Low

Postscript:  Since the survey of this hill, the LIDAR (Light Detection & Ranging) technique is being used to produce accurate height and position for hills.  Subsequently this hill has been analysed via this technique, and it is the col result for this hill that is being prioritised in preference to that produced by the Trimble GeoXH 6000.

Survey Result:

Chelmorton Low

Summit Height:  445.4m (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Summit Grid Reference:  SK 11432 70636 (Trimble GeoXH 6000)

Col Height:  384.7m (LIDAR)

Col Grid Reference:  SK 11890 69667 (LIDAR)

Drop:  60.7m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR col)

Dominance:  13.62% (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR col)

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet

Mapping Mountains – Trimble Surveys – Axe Edge

27.06.19  Booth Top (SK 054 680)

Booth Top (SK 054 680)

Occasionally the journey to the hill can be as uplifting as the hill itself and with blue skies overhead and summer warmth I set off toward the Peak District with a survey of a 400m Sub-Four listed with an estimated c 29m of drop planned.

The journey through small towned border country and then eastward through Congleton was a delight, beyond the road gradient increased as greened countryside opened as I entered the Peak.

Minor roads led me toward Booth Farm where the tarmac ends.  I parked just above the farm next to a number of large barns where a flurry of activity was in progress with a number of tractors and diggers at work.

A fine stone sign for Booth Farm

I approached the first yellow jacketed person I saw; Percy Mycock was the owner of the farm and had lived here all his life, he was only too happy to talk about the hill and afterward kindly posed for a few photographs.  Percy told me the hill is known as Booth Top and having explained my interest in surveying he said that visiting the neighbouring ground of the farm and the summit shouldn’t be any problem, with no one currently in at the former, although the land where the summit is situated was not on his land.  After thanking him I spent the next hour at the area of the col taking a series of data sets.

Percy Mycock with Booth Top in the background

The col comprises Percy’s home and the farm, which is rented.  I’d come prepared with ten figure grid references produced from Ordnance Survey 5m contouring and quickly found that my preferred grid reference was on the downward slope of the valley to valley traverse.  Having the reassurance that no one was in at the farm and permission to investigate the surrounds and take however many data sets deemed necessary put me at ease as I set the Trimble up at the side of the farm building on wrought iron railings over the corner of a rough grassed field.

As the Trimble gathered its first data set I stood in the sunshine and then examined the route of the valley to valley traverse as it heads steeply up from the southern valley to the end of the paved minor road and continues toward the corner of a building before emerging between the building and farm.  It was the latter position where the Trimble was now set up gathering data.

Between the farm on the left and Percy's house on the right, the col is near the comfy chairs and table!

I gathered further data from the surrounds of the building before positioning the equipment atop my rucksack on the edge of the minor road to confirm that this latter position is lower on the valley to valley traverse.  My conclusion was that the critical point of the col is either under the building beside the farm or at its rear.  Happy with my col endeavours I walked to the track which continues from the end of the minor road and heads up the hill.

The last col data set taken at the edge of the minor road

A welcoming cooling breeze blew from the south as I walked up the track which helped in the increasingly warm conditions on the hill.  The track led to a gate which gave access to the field where on first inspection I thought the summit was positioned.  As I assessed the lay of land a small herd of cows frisked there way this way and that, forever inquisitive, but thankfully always keeping their distance.

Looking down on the area of the col from the ascent of Booth Top

The high point of the hill is placed on the periphery of what to my eye is an artificially raised embankment which has a partly collapsed wall straddling it.  I again collected data from a number of points, and these coupled with the col data sets will confirm this hill’s status and whether it should be classified as a fully-fledged Four.

The raised embankment and wall 

The first of three summit data sets was taken from the highest ground immediately below the partly collapsed wall; this position was on the raised embankment.  The second set-up position was on the edge of the raised embankment in the field to the south of the ridge fence which was adjacent to the partly collapsed wall and the third and last summit data set was taken in the opposing northerly field adjacent to the edge of the raised embankment.

Gathering data on the summit area of Booth Top

During each data set I stood in the sunshine admiring the view and watched as the small herd of cows frisked their way in to and then out of the field.  Once all necessary data were gathered and stored I followed the ridge fence down to a gate and re-joined my inward route back on the track down to the col and my awaiting car.

Taking Alpacas for a walk with Chrome Hill in the background

  

Postscript:

Since the Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey, LIDAR coverage is now available for this hill and analysis of both its summit and col via LIDAR is being prioritised for its numerical and positional data.

Survey Result:

Booth Top (significant name change)

Summit Height:  407.6m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SK 05481 68091 (LIDAR) (summit relocation)

Col Height:  379.1m (LIDAR)

Col Grid Reference:  SK 05720 68021 (LIDAR)

Drop:  28.6m (LIDAR)

Dominance:  7.01% (LIDAR)

For further details please consult the Trimble Survey Spreadsheet